VCE Psychology Unit 3 - Revision DOT POINT Podcasts

AOS 1 Mind, Brain and Body

Below are the Revision Podcasts for each of the dot points in Area of Study #1.

U3AOS1Dot point #1

• consciousness as a psychological construct informed by the work of René Descartes and William James

Dot Point Sheet UNIT 3 AOS 1 dotpoint#1.doc UNIT 3 AOS 1 dotpoint#1b.docx

U3AOS1Dot point #2

• concepts of normal waking consciousness and altered states of consciousness, including

daydreaming, meditative and alcohol-induced, in terms of levels of awareness, content limitations,
controlled and automatic processes, perceptual and cognitive distortions, emotional awareness,
self-control and time orientation


Dot Point Sheet UNIT 3 AOS 1 dotpoint#2.docx

U3AOS1Dot point #3

• sleep as an altered state of consciousness: purpose, characteristics and patterns of the stages of

sleep including rapid eye movement (REM) and the non-rapid eye movement (NREM) stages of
sleep


Dot Point Sheet UNIT 3 AOS 1 dotpoint#3.docx

U3AOS1Dot point #4

• methods used to study the level of alertness in normal waking consciousness and the stages of

sleep:
– measurement of physiological responses including electroencephalograph (EEG), electro-
oculargraph (EOG), heart rate, body temperature and galvanic skin response (GSR)
– the use of sleep laboratories, video monitoring and self reports



U3AOS1Dot point #5

• the effects of total and partial sleep deprivation:

– loss of REM and NREM sleep
– sleep recovery patterns including amount of sleep required, REM rebound and microsleeps
– sleep-wake cycle shifts during adolescence compared with child and adult sleep including
delayed onset of sleep and need for sleep



U3AOS1Dot point #6a

• the interaction between cognitive processes of the brain and its structure including:

– roles of the central nervous system, peripheral nervous system (somatic and autonomic), and
autonomic nervous system (sympathetic and parasympathetic)




U3AOS1Dot point #6b

– roles of the four lobes of the cerebral cortex in the control of motor, somatosensory, visual and
auditory processing in humans; primary cortex and association areas



U3AOS1Dot point #6c

– hemispheric specialisation: the cognitive and behavioural functions of the right and left
hemispheres of the cerebral cortex, non-verbal versus verbal and analytical functions



U3AOS1Dot point #6d

– the role of the reticular activating system in selective attention and wakefulness; role of the
thalamus in directing attention and switching sensory input on and off



U3AOS1Dot point #7a

• contribution of studies to the investigation of cognitive processes of the brain and implications for

the understanding of consciousness including:
– studies of aphasia including Broca’s aphasia and Wernicke’s aphasia
– spatial neglect caused by stroke or brain injury


U3AOS1Dot point #7b

– split-brain studies including the work of Roger Sperry and Michael Gazzaniga
– perceptual anomalies including motion after-effect, change blindness, synaesthesia



U3AOS1Dot point #8

• the application and use of brain research methods in investigating the relationship between biological

and cognitive factors of human behaviours including:

U3AOS1Dot point #8a
– direct brain stimulation and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)



U3AOS1Dot point #8b
– brain recording and imaging techniques: computed tomography (CT), positron emission
tomography (PET), single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI), and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)



GO TO MEMORY PODCASTS click here

• research methods and ethical principles associated with the study of the brain and states of

consciousness, as outlined in the introduction to the unit.

GO TO MEMORY PODCASTS click here

GO TO RESEARCH METHODS PODCASTS click here